Things to do in Denver

DENVER — They’re playing baseball less than a mile from my hotel room, where the TV is on and it’s 1-1 in the 7th. All of a sudden I’m a Rockies’ fan because if they win tonight, they don’t play tomorrow. And the last thing downtown Denver needs tomorrow is another 50-60,000 people on day when 80,000 will be watching the Broncos, tens of thousands are taking place in a Walk for a Cure fund-raiser to fight breast cancer and nearly that many might be around for Octoberfest-ivities.

Oh, and did I mention there’s also a hockey game scheduled between the Sharks and Avalanche that normally would draw 18,000? Even if the Rockies don’t play Sunday, I’m guessing there’ll be more than a few empty seats at the Pepsi Center because of the late-night partying everbody expects if the Rockies advance and the resulting hangovers.

But if nobody else in town is paying attention to hockey, I am … so here goes.

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Travel, logistics and a breakdown in communications kept me from getting to the Sharks practice today. One phone call later, all I can tell you is this: Setoguchi stayed off the ice and Ozolinsh, still technically a tryout who can’t be signed until Wednesday, showed up and skated with the team. Just guessing, but maybe that’s because he still has a house in the Denver area.

A couple other quick notes.

You may have noticed in the print edition Saturday that I included a list of teams that had scouts at the game. I plan to do that a lot this year for a couple reasons. One, it’s available information. Two, you can have fun with it. But a word of advice: Scouts are at every game. Sometimes it means something, most of the time it doesn’t as teams size each other up for future games and, who knows, maybe trade talk down the line, way down the line. But, hey, don’t let me slow you down. You want to speculate, speculate away.

On the cab ride from the airport I heard a radio ad for the Avalanche with a reference to Colorado’s “new minister of defense — Scott Hannan!!” He also showed up on a local magazine cover, along with two other Avs newcomers. Now he never got THAT kind of treatment in San Jose, eh?

David Pollak

David Pollak has been following the NHL forever and at the Mercury News as an editor or reporter since 1987. For almost a decade he wrote about the Sharks as the paper's Fan in the Stands before joining the sports department in 2001. He became the Sharks beat writer before the 2007-08 season and began this blog at that time. You can also follow him on Twitter at @PollakOnSharks.

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I wonder if Ron Wilson had a different opinion of Doug Murray’s performance against Vancouver that against Edmonton?

Deirdre

On the Avs new Minister of Defense, that’s fantastic!
The Sharks front office has never been very good at advertising the players as individuals. Half the time our in-game sheets are missing players on the day of the game!

Beth P

Okay, what local mag in Denver was Hannan on the cover of so that I can get a copy? He still has lots of fans here in SJ!